For Immediate Release
Thursday, February 01, 1996
Labor Union Endorses National Day of Commitment to Children
Washington, DC —The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), AFL-CIO -- the nation's largest public employee and health care workers union and an organization that has long championed pro-children and pro-family policies -- today strongly endorsed the National Day of Commitment to Children.
The National Day of Commitment to Children will be celebrated on Saturday, June 1, at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C.
AFSCME President Gerald W. McEntee today said: "AFSCME takes seriously its commitment to the family. We fight hard to negotiate union contracts that are pro-family. And we lobby hard in Washington, D.C. to make sure that legislation that helps the family is enacted. We share the Children's Defense Fund's commitment to children and we heed the moral call to action to leave no child behind."
McEntee, who chairs the AFL-CIO Work and Family Committee, has led the labor movement in working for workplace and national policies to assist children and their parents. He also serves on the board of the Child Care Action Campaign, a national group devoted to improving the quality of child care.
McEntee said he hopes that more employers both in the private and public sector will implement policies that help families, while at the same time he called on government to establish adequate and responsible national policies. AFSCME has long been a leader in making positive changes in the workplace. For example, AFSCME has:
- won collective bargaining language that helps working parents be both productive workers and responsible and caring parents (e.g. financial assistance for child care, family and medical leave, and flexible work schedules).
- worked jointly with employers in labor-management committees to design innovative work and family programs such as on-side child care centers.
- been a leader in the fight for legislation to protect children, including the Family and Medical Leave Act and the Child Development and Block Grant Program.
- led the Save America's Families Coalition campaign in providing a strong voice for a pro-family federal budget, including protecting funding for health care, education, and the environment.
- fought to make sure that children efforts to reform the welfare system include adequate child care provisions.
"CDF President Marian Wright Edelman is someone with the vision and skills necessary to improve the future of children. I am certain that the National Day of Commitment to Children will be a huge success, and am pleased that AFSCME has been invited to be a part of it," said McEntee.
